Messi: Xavi will help Barcelona grow
Martin Macdonald
- 23 Nov 2021 08:46 GMT
- 3 min read
Lionel Messi believes Barcelona have made a good call in appointing Xavi as their new head coach, saying his former team-mate will help the club "grow".
Following the disappointing tenure of Ronald Koeman, legendary former midfielder Xavi was appointed Barcelona boss earlier this month.
He took charge of his first match over the weekend and guided Barca to a narrow 1-0 victory against city rivals Espanyol, with Memphis Depay netting the only goal of the game from the penalty spot.
It was a positive start for Xavi, but the Spaniard has his work cut out at Camp Nou as the club is in turmoil both on and off the pitch.
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On the pitch, they have won just five of their opening 13 matches and currently sit in seventh in La Liga.
Off the pitch, the horrendous state of their finances met vast cuts were needed in the summer, which eventually led to the departure of Lionel Messi.
The Argentine is now at Paris Saint-Germain, but that hasn't stopped questions being posed to him about Barca, including regarding Xavi's appointment.
Commenting on his former team-mate, Messi told Marca:
“Xavi is a coach who knows a lot, who knows the house perfectly, who knows everything well since he was a child.
"He is a very important person for the young people and that he is a person who will make Barcelona grow a lot, I have no doubt."
Xavi will take charge of his first Champions League match this week when the Blaugrana face Benfica.
Will Messi return to Barcelona?
It was an emotional departure for Messi during the summer when the club announced they would no longer be able to keep him at Camp Nou due to their need to restructure their wage bill.
The Argentine even agreed a 50% wage cut to remain at Barca, but the club were still not allowed to register him as he technically would have arrived as a new player as his contract expired in June.
There is speculation that Messi could return to Barcelona and then retire following his spell at PSG, and if the player his his way, that is what will happen.
“I always said that I would return to Barcelona because I want to help the club in what I can and obviously if I can help the club in what I mean, I would love to be able to return," he explained.
